Shadow Copy & System state Backup failure

[Vamsi1]

Hello Team,

All of sudden backup of system state & shadows Copy is started failing. Which was running fine previous. (All Drive Backups are running fine)

Backup Server : Windows Server 2003/2008

Backup Exec Version : 2010

Error is pasted below. Kindly check and help in fixing this.

AOFO: Initialization failure on: "\\Server_Name\Shadow?Copy?Components". Advanced Open File Option used: No.
The network connection failed during the snapshot. Check the network, and then run the job again.
V-79-57344-65302 - The Shadow Copy resource is not responding. Backup set canceled.
V-79-57344-65302 - The Shadow Copy resource is not responding. Backup set canceled.
- AOFO: Initialization failure on: "\\Server_NameSystem?State". Advanced Open File Option used: No.
The network connection failed during the snapshot. Check the network, and then run the job again.
V-79-57344-65301 - The System State resource is not responding. Backup set canceled.
V-79-57344-65301 - The System State resource is not responding. Backup set canceled.

[Siddhant_Saini]

Hello Vamsi,

Based on the error reported, you might want to refer to the following link: 

http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=content&id=TECH165493

[lmosla]

If the previous link didnt resolve the issue,

• make sure Backup Exec is fully updated with the most recent updates,
• check to see if an antivirus program is causing a conflict
• check windows events for errors that occur during the backup and post them
• try a reboot.

[Kunal_Mudliyar1]

Looks like a VSS component issue

Try a system state backup via ntbackup if windows 2003 from the local server

or if 2008 install the backup role and wbadmin command and try a local backup on the server which was failing.

[MusSeth]

Could you please check if vss writers are stable on system... If not than reboot the server and than check....

[Sush---]

Hello Vamsi,

   To backup Shadow Copy Component or System State it always uses VSS. So can you confirm if VSS service on that remote server  set to manual type? Also try to start the service and see if there is any issues with it.

Regards,

-Sush...

[Vamsi1]

Thank you all for your vaulable inputs. I will check and get back to you....

[LokiFatCat]

The VSS writers are owned by Microsoft and are merely called on to perform a function by Backup Exec. On the severs with the issue, open a command prompt with admin privileges and run "vssadmin list writers." This will show the status of the VSS writers on the system. If any show as other than "stable" then there may be an issue with the writers. Usually a reboot of the system resolves the issue. If the writers do not show at all or they are still not "stable" after a reboot, then you may need to contact Microsoft to resolve the issue.

As Sush says above, the VSS services should be in Manual start and should not be started unless they are being used. There are 2 VSS services: Microsoft Software Shadow Copy Provider and Volume Shadow Copy. If the server is a Hyper-V host, there will be other VSS services specific to Hyper-V